So you’re back to school. For some of you that means you’re back in a dorm or a campus apartment. Others of you are at home, but the bulk of your days are spent on campus going to class, joining study groups, running into old friends and even eating at the café. School is fully back and that includes the tests that come with it. Most of those tests are academic, but some are spiritual. This semester I want you to pass every test, and you can, but you have to prepare to do it.
Everyone knows that one of the best ways to prepare to pass a test is by studying, but few of us study in the most effective way. Most of us cram. After days or even weeks of not engaging with material, we fully engage over one or two, maybe even three nights. Often that type of cramming or studying will yield fairly good results but we usually forget what we crammed into our brains pretty quickly after the test is over. The best way to prepare for a test is by making study a daily practice. Where am I going with this?
To pass the spiritual tests that college is waiting to throw at you, the best way to prepare is to practice—to develop the spiritual practices of daily bible reading, prayer, meditation and communing with other believers. If you’ve ever felt like something was missing in your walk with Jesus, those spiritual practices and a few others might be it. John 15:5 says, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me and I in him bears much fruit; for without Me, you can do nothing.” Practicing spiritual disciplines (prayer, meditation, bible reading, meeting with other believers) is a sure way to abide in Jesus this school year.
